Opening February 14th, This Means War is an action spy comedy about two CIA operatives (Chris Pine, Tom Hardy) who are in love with the same woman (Reese Witherspoon). During the press conference to promote the film, McG was asked about the challenges of blending comedy (co-star Chelsea Handler is the picture’s resident scene stealer) and action into a cinematic gumbo pot.

McG, whose manic energy is infused in all of his movies, understands This Means War is pure entertainment and really not “about the human condition.” Listen to the filmmaker talk about why it was natural for him to blend different genres with This Means War: